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Cavalier approach Cleveland appears to be without much of a planPosted: Friday October 04, 2002 12:23 PMBy Jon Wertheim, Sports Illustrated
There was no risk of the coach being drowned out this preseason. The Cavs elected to stay in town at Gund Arena, and during two-a-days John Lucas ' raspy voice is clear as a bell. When he busted the chops of rookie guard Dajuan Wagner -- "Sure you don't want to go back to college, son?" -- the entire team laughed. When he used a colorful metaphor (unfit to repeat on these pages) to question the heart of swingman Darius Miles , you could hear it in the rafters. Midway through Wednesday morning's session Lucas busted into song, his voice echoing through the venue: "My posse can't help me now." A shame, since Lucas and his moribund team will take any help they can get this season. Cleveland could use a credible starting point guard. A stronger power forward. An experienced scorer. A defensive stopper. It would also have helped if the team had retained at least one of its three leading scorers from last season. At it stands, Lucas will coach one of the league's least experienced, least competitive teams this season. As bad as the Cavs were in 2001-'02 (29-53), they made themselves worse over the summer. Point guard Andre Miller , the reigning league leader in assists, was jettisoned to the Clippers for Miles. Then the team effectively gave away shooting guard Wesley Person (to Memphis in exchange for Nick Anderson ) and "traded" leading scorer Lamond Murray to Toronto for the equivalent of a six-pack of Molson (read: Michael Stewart and a first-round pick.) On his way out the door, Murray served up one of the better quotes of the offseason. Complaining about the lack of respect he got from the organization, he remarked: "I couldn't even get a lunch pail, and they have Chris Mihm Bobblehead Day." (Unfortunately, this was one of the few times Murray got defensive in all his time in northern Ohio.) Make no mistake, in a few years the Cavs could be competitive. Could be good, even. You could have a worse long-term nucleus than Miles, slashing 2-guard Ricky Davis and Wagner, ages 21 (as of Oct. 9), 23 and 19, respectively. All are tremendous athletes with loads of "upside," as they say in NBA circles. This season, however, expect scads of turnovers, missed shots and iffy decisions, leavened by the occasional highlight-reel dunk. Even Lucas admits, "These guys don't know how to play yet." Eventually they will. The more immediate concern is the utter lack of a point guard. With Miller's departure, the leader on the depth chart is 34-year-old Bimbo Coles , who averaged 2.3 assists last season. ( Milt Palacio , king of the 10-day contract, and Miles will also see time.) Power forward is also a weak spot, where the slim pickings include the declining Tyrone Hill and Jumaine Jones , who showed an indifference to defense last season. Third-year big man Mihm, he of the bobblehead doll, came to camp noticeably bulked up, but promptly injured his hamstring. What's really going on here? Management speaks of a "youth movement" and creating a young, athletic team that will play 94 feet. But one suspects there's more than a little truth to the rumors that owner Gordon Gund has had it with this moribund franchise and is happy to entertain offers. Keeping salaries down -- Miller was due for a maximum contract -- is a way to make the commodity more attractive to potential buyers. Whatever, pity poor Lucas, the man tasked with captaining this sinking ship. For his patience alone, he ought to at least get his own lunch pail.
Sports Illustrated senior writer Jon Wertheim covers the NBA for the magazine and is a regular contributor to CNNSI.com.
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